ABSTRACT
Introduction To direct scant specialized palliative care (PC) resources to patients in greatest need, we developed the STEP intervention (Symptom screening with Targeted Early Palliative care). STEP entails symptom screening with ESAS-r at each oncology visit and triggered alerts (for moderatehigh symptoms) to a nurse who calls the patient to offer a PC clinic visit. Methods Consenting adults with advanced cancer, ECOG 0-2, attending medical oncology clinics at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, were randomized to STEP or usual care. Participants completed quality of life (FACTG7), depression (PHQ-9), symptom control (ESASr-CS), and satisfaction with care (FAMCARE-P16) measures at baseline, 2, 4, and 6 months. The primary outcome was FACT-G7 at 6 months. Results From August 2019 to March 2020, 33 patients were randomized to STEP and 36 to usual care. The trial was subsequently permanently halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Groups were balanced at baseline except gender, with more females in the STEP arm (Table 1). In the STEP arm, 20 participants triggered a nurse 's call, of whom 13 had ≥1 PC clinic visit. At 6 months, all outcomes tended to be better in the STEP arm compared to usual care, particularly depression and satisfaction with care;however, results were not statistically significant (Table 2, Figure 1). Conclusions STEP holds promise for improving outcomes in patients with advanced cancer. An online version (eSTEP) is being developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.